Dear Editor,
The appeal made by H. Singh, ‘Let the government begin the tender process for big buses,’ published in SN on July 29, 2008 has inspired me to make the following observation: We have to be careful lest history repeat itself.
I remember the days of the Tata and Bamford buses. And I remember the days of Lazzo and the Eddy Grant bus fiasco. I think it was a lack of proper operating systems which neither private entrepreneurs nor government sought to improve that caused failure to visit this aspect of the very promising transportation future on the coastal plains of our country. I don’t think much, if anything, has improved since then. It is the setting of proper social standards that challenges us in Guyana. A lack of standards breathes disorder and disrespect, and seriously disrupts the fabric of our communities and our society at large.
I remember once visiting Suriname and observing how orderly buses were in the queue. Each bus moved patiently to the top of the line to be filled with passengers, and off they went to their destinations.
When they returned they worked their way from the back of the queue to the front again; driver respecting driver, commuter following a system, a code that could not be violated. I was struck by the absence of stress. An orderly atmosphere of business, professionalism among operators, and respect for commuters prevailed. This was commuting of quality and high standard.
Is there really a need for big buses, or is there really a need for a legal traffic system that is ubiquitous, stringent, unyielding and operable? Don’t we sense the absence of systems that will help our people to understand the need to be disciplined, and how beneficial it is to strive towards a society of moral standards? Music is still blared within the small sacred space of minibuses. Drivers still hurl their buses down the roadway beyond speed limits. Conductors are still fighting among themselves and fighting passengers for their patronage. The competitive spirit among minibus operators is anarchic, to say the least.
If new systems are not put in place for the traffic codes and laws to be observed and respected, then new big buses and their operators will soon be possessed by the same old spirit. There will be no end to the chaos and carnage on our roads.
Finally, I must add that the minibus operation in Guyana is helping many a poor family, and providing employment for many a young Guyanese that the employment crisis in Guyana may not be able to handle. It helps. But, in any poor society, if the services we provide and the few assets we have are not maintained through laws, and the active policing of laws, they soon deteriorate and become thorns in the flesh.
Yours faithfully,
Pastor Kwesi Oginga
